1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a keyboard apparatus available for a surveillance system, and more particularly to a keyboard apparatus equipped with a joystick of the type having a switch mounted thereon.
2. Description of the Related Art
Up until now, there have been proposed a wide variety of conventional keyboard apparatuses equipped with a joystick of the type having a switch mounted thereon.
The conventional keyboard apparatuses of this type have so far been used for such a surveillance system available for watching unqualified people and other intruders intruding into a special room which does not permit people with any permission from entering. One typical example of the conventional keyboard apparatuses is shown in FIG. 8 as being provided in combination with a prior-art surveillance system 700 which comprises a camera unit 710, a display unit 730 for displaying an image taken by the camera unit 710, and a control unit 740 for controlling the operation of the camera unit 710 in response to operation commands inputted therein.
Description will now be made on how the image taken by the camera unit 710 is displayed on the screen of the display unit 730.
When the camera unit 710 is operated to take an image to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 730, the camera unit 710 is firstly driven by the control unit 740 to transform the image into an image signal outputted to a signal transmitting cable 701. The image signal thus outputted to the signal transmitting cable 701 is then transmitted to a system unit 720 before being inputted to the display unit 730.
The image signal is then transformed into an image to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 730.
In order to have the camera unit 710 operated by the operation commands of the control unit 740 to photograph an image, the control unit 740 is operated to receive the operation commands respectively indicative of the photographing directions, magnifications and the like inputted by an operator while he or she is watching the screen of the display unit 730. The control unit 740 inputted with the operation commands is then operated to transform the operation commands into a command signal to be transmitted to a signal transmitting cable 703. The command signal thus transmitted to the signal transmitting cable 703 is then inputted to the system unit 720 where the command signal is then transformed into a drive signal to drive the camera unit 710 to be outputted to the camera unit 710 by way of the signal transmitting cable 701. The camera unit 710 thus received the drive signal from the system unit 720 is at this time operated to change the photographing directions, magnifications and the like into new ones.
As will be seen from the above, there has been described only one camera unit 710 provided in combination with the system unit 720, the display unit 730, the control unit 740 in the conventional surveillance system for the purpose of simplifying the description and assisting in understanding about the whole operation of the surveillance system.
In reality, such a conventional surveillance system 800, however, is as shown in FIG. 9 to comprise a plurality of camera units 810, a system unit 820, a plurality of display units 830, and a plurality of control units 840. The conventional surveillance system 800 thus constructed allows an operator to selectively operate those control units 840 to input to control units 840 operation commands indicative of selecting one or more camera units 810 and one or more display units 830. This leads to the fact that the operator can select one or more control units 840 not only to have the image displayed on the screen of one or more display units 830 in accordance with the image taken by one or more selected camera units 810 but to operate the camera units 810 under the operation states optioned by the operator.
Here, as the control unit 840 forming part of the conventional surveillance system is used a CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) type of keyboard apparatus which is hereinafter referred simply to xe2x80x9ca keyboard apparatusxe2x80x9d. The keyboard apparatus used heretofore is generally equipped with a joystick designed to input operation commands by an operator to ensure that a camera unit is operated under various operation states changed in photographing directions, magnifications and the like. Such a joystick usually has a switch to input the operation commands for example having lenses automatically focus an image.
The foregoing construction of the joystick and switch combination thus far proposed has prompted researchers to develop an easy-to-operate keyboard apparatus, for example, a keyboard apparatus capable of operating the joystick and the switch by one hand.
However, the conventional keyboard apparatus encounters such a problem that the change of the content of the operation commands to the joystick and the switch is performed by a software frequently changed with its new version, resulting from the fact that the content of the operation commands to be inputted by the joystick and the switch by some operators is different from those by other operators.
The conventional keyboard apparatus can change the contents of the operation commands depending upon the needs by the operators, however, encounters complicated management to various kinds of software to be changed in compliance with the needs by the operators. In this sense, the conventional keyboard apparatus is in no practical use.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a keyboard apparatus which facilitates to change the contents of the operation commands depending upon the needs by the operators to allow the operator to readily operate a joystick and a switch operatively mounted thereon.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a keyboard apparatus for controlling and operating at least one exterior appliance, comprising: a key retainer; a plurality of keys each operatively arranged on the key retainer to perform a key-pushed action and a key-released action, each of the keys being operative to input a signal indicative of the key-pushed action; a joystick journally provided in association with the keys to input a signal indicative of the movement thereof; a switch operatively supported on the joystick and movable with respect to the joystick to selectively perform a switch-on action and a switch-off action; switch signal inputting means for inputting a switch signal indicative of the switch-on action when the switch is operated and moved to perform the switch-on action with respect to the joystick; key code signal inputting means for inputting a key code signal indicative of the key-pushed action when each of the keys is operated and moved to perform the key-pushed action; information recording means for recording specific relevant information between the switch signal inputted from the switch signal inputting means and the key code signal inputted from the key code signal inputting means, the specific relevant information being formed by at least one specific key selected from among the keys and brought into the key-pushed action; signal processing means for receiving and processing the switch signal from the switch signal inputting means and the key code signal from the key code signal inputting means, the signal processing means being operative to selectively assume two different operation states consisting of a first operation state under which the specific relevant information is recorded by the information recording means in accordance with the switch signal inputted by the switch signal inputting means and the key code signal inputted by the key code signal inputting means, and a second operation state under which the key code signal in response to the switch signal from the switch signal inputting means is outputted to the exterior appliance in accordance to the specific relevant information recorded by the information recording means; and state setting means for selectively setting the first and second operation states.
The keyboard apparatus may further comprise a display unit for displaying the specific relevant information between the switch signal and the key code signal formed when the specific key is brought into the key-pushed action.
The key code signal inputting means may include a plurality of numerical keys which are selectively combined to form a plurality of desired key codes.
The key code signal inputting means may include a plurality of keys which are selectively combined to form a plurality of desired key codes.
The state setting means may include a first operation state holding key for allowing the signal processing means to assume the first operation state, and a second operation state holding key for allowing the signal processing means to assume the second operation state.
The information recording means may be operated by the exterior appliance to record therein the specific relevant information between the switch signal and the key code signal.
The joystick and the switch may have respective axis held in coaxial relationship with each other, and the joystick having an upper surface and the switch being resiliently urged to project upwardly of the upper surface of the joystick under the switch-off action.